Wong knew perfectly well that if a fight offered no sense of danger, Wang Yang would only feel at ease. When he faced a real enemy, he would fail to recognize the danger.
Since this was his first lesson, Wong had to make him understand how terrifying combat could be.
The force behind Wong's blows suddenly increased.
Faced with these fierce attacks, Wang Yang could only retreat.
The pressure doubled.
Just then, the boots on Wong's feet shone with golden light.
He stepped forward, seemingly planting his foot on the air itself.
In just a step or two, he was already beside Wang Yang.
This was Wang Yang's first time facing such an attack. Although he managed to block, he was still hurled away.
Thud!
Wang Yang flew backward and crashed to the ground.
"You must remember that combat always carries the risk of death!"
"If you don't respect that danger, you will never survive a fight!"
Lying on the ground, Wang Yang looked at Wong standing before him, his face filled with admiration.
As expected of a Master of the Mystic Arts. He's so powerful.
Had he not absorbed Wong's combat talent, he would probably have lost long ago.
Yet under Wang Yang's gaze, Wong felt his face grow slightly warm. After all, his victory had hardly been fair.
He looked at Wang Yang with mixed feelings.
Such an expression was almost unheard of on Wong's face.
That alone showed just how shocked he was.
It was hardly surprising. He had thought Wang Yang's extraordinary magical talent was impressive enough, but none of them had ever expected his combat talent to be just as remarkable.
It was as though he had been born knowing how to fight.
If not for Wong's wealth of combat experience...
And his formidable strength, he probably could not have defeated Wang Yang while using only the same amount of force.
In a sense, his victory really had been unfair.
At Kamar-Taj, it was rare for a Master of the Mystic Arts to need greater strength than an apprentice to defeat them.
And this was a newcomer who had only just begun training.
It was easy to imagine how conflicted Wong felt.
But Wang Yang felt even more conflicted with Wong staring at him like that.
He was only an apprentice who had just started training, so he was bound to have plenty of shortcomings. With Wong looking at him like that, he naturally grew worried. "Master, I know there must be things I did poorly. Please tell me!"
Wang Yang could not help feeling apprehensive.
Although he had absorbed Wong's combat talent, he still had not been able to stop his attacks.
"You've already done very well to get this far!"
Despite his mixed feelings, Wong could hardly admit his own inadequacy in front of an apprentice, much less praise Wang Yang.
"But there are some things you haven't handled properly. Get up. I'll correct your moves and the way you generate force!"
Wong spoke with a stern expression.
Combat technique was, essentially, the art of executing moves and generating force.
Through those movements and methods, a fighter could bring their strength to its fullest potential and unleash tremendous destructive power.
Even after learning these fighting techniques, Wang Yang naturally could not compare with Wong, who had spent countless years studying them.
After their sparring session, Wong began correcting his mistakes.
"That's right. Just like that. Release your strength with the momentum!"
"Use your feet as your foundation and generate force through your waist. That's right..."
Wong's teaching style was exactly what his demeanor suggested. There was nothing gentle about it.
At the slightest mistake, his staff came swinging in.
Yet Wang Yang was like a dried-out sponge, rapidly soaking up nourishment.
Precisely because of that, his progress accelerated at a visibly rapid pace.
Ding! Battle Talent Fragment detected. Integrate?
As Wong taught him, Wang Yang frequently heard the system's notifications, almost one every few moments.
In that short time alone, he felt he had made tremendous progress.
He was truly delighted. Every bit of knowledge he learned gave him another measure of confidence in his ability to protect himself in the future.
Yet Wang Yang's eagerness to learn left Wong feeling conflicted.
He felt he had underestimated the young man before him.
Although he had already noticed the young man's quick reactions during their fight, now he needed to demonstrate almost every movement only once.
Wang Yang could master it immediately.
Wong had never seen this in any of the countless apprentices he had taught.
After all, fighting techniques required more than memorization. They required muscle memory.
Habits formed in everyday life could also affect how one generated force in combat, and those flaws could be fatal.
The crucial point was that without hundreds or thousands of repetitions, such habits were practically impossible to change.
Yet Wang Yang changed his habits with ease.
He also effortlessly memorized the combat moves and motions.
Is this kid some kind of freak?
Wong could not help marveling to himself.
"All right, Wang Yang. Take a break."
"You can't master combat techniques in a single day. They require sustained effort!"
"And all of it depends on your physical foundation, so you need to practice diligently!"
"You also need to take medicinal baths to improve your physique!"
Wong spoke slowly.
Both movements and methods of generating force depended on a strong physical foundation.
Besides regular exercise, building that foundation required nourishing and conditioning the body.
Kamar-Taj had its own methods for doing so.
After hearing Wong's instructions, Wang Yang nodded. "Yes, Master!"
Although Wang Yang could now feel the aches coursing through his body, he was in high spirits.
He could feel that he had made considerable progress.
He even had the sense that he could easily defeat his former self.
Feeling cosmic energy slowly repairing his body, Wang Yang smiled.
"All right, off you go!"
"These combat techniques should give you plenty to practice for a while!"
"And this isn't just about fighting. You also need to improve your physical fitness!"
Wong shared his experience with Wang Yang, one point at a time.
But Wang Yang would have to work hard to put that experience into practice. Otherwise, he would never achieve any of it.
Wang Yang nodded. After saying goodbye to Wong, he used a Portal to return to his apprentice room.
None of his roommates had returned yet.
After taking a shower, Wang Yang collapsed onto his bed.
He really was exhausted.
But he also understood that if he wanted to be able to protect himself when danger struck in the future, he had to hold himself to strict standards without letting up.
Otherwise, taking it easy now might leave him shedding tears of regret later.
After only a brief rest, he got out of bed and began practicing the movements together in his room.
As he trained diligently, a knock sounded at the door.
Wang Yang opened it and discovered Master Kamar-Taj standing outside.
P.S. Happy New Year to everyone reading this book! May you strike it rich in the Year of the Tiger. Please bookmark, vote, and send tips, though there probably won't be any.
Still, you've got to have hope. Without wishes, how are you any different from a total layabout?
Before you continue